Looking for a foreign investor friendly broker

michaelbr · Oct 17, 2012

Greetings:
Can someone tell me which of the online discount brokers have the following features? I know that some info can be obtained at their websites, but those info are not very accurate, for instance, to setup ACH, my currently broker's site said you need an US bank in order to set it up, but when I filed my request, they said it's only available to US resident.
broker features I'm looking for:
- ACH setup for a foreign investor with an US based bank
- dividend tax withholding reported accurately for foreign investors (my current broker said there are "unreportable dividend" for some of the stocks/ETF I bought)

ps: I'm sending inquiries to some of the brokers, but it's time consuming, so if I can narrow down the list, it'll be faster.

comintel · Oct 19, 2012

Quote from michaelbr:

Greetings:
Can someone tell me which of the online discount brokers have the following features? I know that some info can be obtained at their websites, but those info are not very accurate, for instance, to setup ACH, my currently broker's site said you need an US bank in order to set it up, but when I filed my request, they said it's only available to US resident.
broker features I'm looking for:
- ACH setup for a foreign investor with an US based bank
- dividend tax withholding reported accurately for foreign investors (my current broker said there are "unreportable dividend" for some of the stocks/ETF I bought)

ps: I'm sending inquiries to some of the brokers, but it's time consuming, so if I can narrow down the list, it'll be faster.

If you already have a U.S. bank account, your current broker may be confused - try talking to someone else there.

Try Interactive Brokers though, they have lots of customers in many countries.

Also what country are you in? It makes a difference.

michaelbr · Oct 19, 2012

Quote from comintel:

If you already have a U.S. bank account, your current broker may be confused - try talking to someone else there.

Try Interactive Brokers though, they have lots of customers in many countries.

Also what country are you in? It makes a difference.

Thanks comintel for your prompt reply, unfortunately my broker is not confused, I sent in my application and they replied that it's only available to US residents!!! Based on my prior tax problem with them, nothing surprises me any more with this broker.

Thanks for your tip, I've already started checking with them.

I'm located in Taiwan.